NHL Line Stacks: March 2nd

After a solid nine-game slate last night, tonight’s three-game schedule give DraftKings DFS hockey played a very limited night of hockey action. There are some top players and lines out there tonight with teams like the Blackhawks, Capitals and Ducks all playing and there are some decent value plays as well tonight, so let’s take a look:

Top Stacks

The Capitals top line would have been my top line of the night on today’s Cheat Sheet but because they played a physical game last night against the Penguins, I went with the Ducks. Still this line is one of the top in the sport on any night that they play and they did their part last night to help the Caps take two divisional points away from the Pens. It’s a rare night that Ovechkin gets kept off the scoresheet, or now two in a row, but he still managed two fantasy points thanks to three SOG and a block. Kuznetsov continued his impressive play this year with his 20th goal of the season, the first time that he has hit the 20-goal barrier, and now has points in three straight games and eight of his last nine overall. Williams picked up the primary assist on Kuz’s goal last night and now has two assists and six SOG in his last two outings. I fully expect this line to be productive tonight against the lowly Maple Leafs tonight, because on the season in two previous meetings with Toronto the trio has combined for six points and 16 SOG.

It is presumable to expect an extra jump in the step of Panarin and Anisimov as the two linemates were both named to the preliminary 16-man roster for this fall’s World Cup of Hockey Team Russia roster on Wednesday morning. Panarin has been an absolute steal for the Blackhawks and is presumably leading the pack in the race for rookie of the year. Despite the fact that he has been held pointless in his last three games he still has 11 points in his last 10 and is always a threat to find the scoresheet, especially Kane. Kane continues his march towards the MVP and has 11 points in his last 10 games as well. Anisimov has enjoyed a nice season and even though he might not break his career high of 44 points, he could very well hit the 40-point barrier for the second time in his career. He snapped a three-game scoring drought with an assist on Kane’s goal in the first. They have a pretty tough matchup with the Red Wings tonight, but with Petr Mrazek nursing a groin issue he might not be at 100% and this line could see success against him.

Mid-Level Stacks

Datsyuk was another member of that initial Russia World Cup roster and has continued his great play over the last three months. He has 36 points in 48 games on the season and has five goals and eight points in his last 10. He netted the game-winning goal on Monday in OT against the Stars which capped a seven-goal month of February that produced 12 points. Zetterberg and Abdelkader have slowed recently with only Abdelkader having the only point in the last five games between the two, a goal against the Avs last Friday. Still expect the two of them to get up to face their former heated rival, the Blackhawks, especially Zetterberg who has 51 points in 54 career matchups with Chicago. Detroit is fighting for their playoff position right now and sit only five points out of the division lead, so expect this line to be firing early and often against Corey Crawford who has shown cracks in the armor lately with 18 goals against in his last six starts.

Value Stacks

The Ducks line has been one of the most productive in the league lately and has a great matchup tonight. Getzlaf should be the player of the month for February after an impressive 20-point month (6G, 14A) that saw him lead the league in scoring and +/- with a +13 rating. He also managed six special teams points. Getzlaf finished the month on an 11-game point streak that he has carried over into March. Perron continued his impressive play with the Ducks by posting 11 points in the month of his own. He enters March on a two-game point streak with a goal and an assist, as well as four SOG, in his last two games and eight points in his last 10 games overall. Santorelli is the weakest offensive link of the group but he has six points in his last 10 games and can contribute occasionally. I put them as my value stack tonight due to the fact that they come in at a cost of $14,300 as an effective top line, and DFS players can easily get at least two of them into their lineups tonight with money to spend on higher-priced talent.

Latest Headlines From

Jared Spurgeon • D • MIN

Jared Spurgeon agrees to long term deal with Wild

The Wild announced that the deal is worth an average annual value of $7.575 million over seven years, taking Spurgeon through the 2026-27 season in Minnesota. Spurgeon was one of the better scoring defenseman in the league last season, ranking 26th in points with 43. Spurgeron set a career high in goals (14), assists (29) and shots on goal (152) last season in part due to playing in all 82 games, also the most of his career. He spent a heavy amount of time on the ice, averaging just over 24 minutes of ice time per game, 17th most among all players. Spurgeon will enter his 10th season with the Wild in 2019-20 and is the franchise leader among D in goals and blocked shots.

Evgeny Kuznetsov suspended for three games

The NHL announced that Kuznetsov would be suspended for three regular season games due to inappropriate conduct, and the league did not elaborate on specific reasons for the suspension. However, a report from The Washington Post stated that Kuznetsov allegedly tested positive for cocaine at the World Championships in May and subsequently misled league officials denying the usage of the substance, which apparently sparked the suspension. Kuznetsov centered the Capitals' top line and scored 72 points in 76 games in 2018-19, 27th best at center. His 51 assists ranked 13th best at center.